Taxi Driver

FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT TAXI DRIVER - PAGE 3

The Greeks genuinely believe Athens is "the centre of all the centres in the world. " Possibly the guys who churn out seductive copy for tourist brochures seriously want to give Homer a run for his money , or else would they gush, "Athens is neither the beginning , nor the end. Athens is everywhere. In every point on the map. And every point of the map is in Athens. " Gosh. Even Homer would blush. With five children of various ages in tow, all I could think of was water.

Another Scandinavian Crime Writer? No. He's the Norwegian prime minister. What Has He Done? Well, in June he drove a taxi in Oslo incognito. Moonlighting? Don't be silly. He was trying to gauge the political mood. So Why Not A Hold A Rally? According to Reuters, he said that taxis are the best place to hear people's opinions. "Right from the gut," he is reported to have said. Surely A Political Gimmick. Are There Elections Round The Corner?

MELBOURNE: Two Indians, including a cabbie, were attacked in separate incidents overnight in Brisbane, a day after Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said that the assaults on Indians in the country were "regrettable". A 25-year-old youth was assaulted and robbed while using a phone box near his home in Macgregor in Brisbane's south at about last night, police officials were quoted a saying by AAP. The youth, whose identity was not disclosed, was punched in the head twice and his wallet stolen.

KOLKATA: Bowing to the demand of taxi unions to relax the steep fine for refusing passengers, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today announced a five-stage fine structure. At present, refusal by a taxi driver invites a fine of Rs 3,000 but henceforth it will attract Rs 100 for the first time, Rs 200 for the second time, Rs 300 for the third time, Rs 400 for the fourth time and Rs 1,000 thereafter. Speaking at a programme here, the CM asked taxi drivers not to misbehave with passengers.

NEW DELHI: Following the alleged rape of a woman by an Uber taxi driver inside the car, the road ministry is seeking to make sure that adequate measures are taken to ensure the safety of women on the road. A Cabinet note to use the Rs 1,000 crore Nirbhaya fund to create a vehicle-tracking system is being rushed through by the ministry. The tracking system is proposed to be launched in 32 cities. The GPS-based vehicle tracking system would be backed up by control centres to monitor any suspicious movement.

BENGALURU: Five years ago, Mumbai native Rupa Swali became separated from her abusive husband. With little education and without a job, she didn't have any income - until she joined Viira Cabs as a taxi driver. Since then, she has been able to send her daughter Mili to complete medical school, and is using her income to provide for three struggling households as well. "I started with absolutely nothing. Now I'm very happy, and there's nothing that I want any more," said the 52-year-old, whose taxi is on call 24 hours a day. Her story mirrors many such instances where female drivers have been hired by all-female taxi companies that were established over the past few years, giving these women a taste of financial freedom.

MELBOURNE: India-born taxi drivers will soon outnumber Australian cabbies, making it the first time the number of workers from a foreign country in a major occupation will exceed their Australia-born counterparts. India is set to emerge next year as the country of birth of most number of automobile drivers - made up of cabbies and chauffeurs, news.com.au reported today citing Australian Bureau of Statistics ( ABS ) data. This multicultural milestone will be the first time that Australian-born workers in a major occupation have been exceeded by workers from a single overseas country since the Australian Bureau of Statistics has kept records, the report said.

CHENNAI: Pandi, a young man from a village near Madurai, gets busy during the election season. He invests a lot of time gathering information on the movements of campaigning political leaders in his constituency and those nearby. He, then, shortlists the candidates based on their standing within the party, popularity and itinerary, and draws his own travel schedule. On appointed days, he dons a white shirt and dhoti, hires a taxi and becomes a part of the entourage -- following the leader's car, stopping wherever it stops.

In January this year, the World Social Forum in Mumbai hosted thousands of participants from across the world, all debating the theme of Another World is Possible. The exchange was facilitated by BABLES, an organisation of interpreters, which provided support to various delegates at the forum. Their objective, as one young interpreter put it, was to "affirm the right of everybody to express themselves in the language of their choice". Truly, in today's cliched 'global village', language can be as much a bridge as it can be a barrier.

MADURAI: Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Saturday ruled that insurance companies were not liable to pay third-party insurance amount in a road accident involving a commercial vehicle, if the driver's licence did not have an endorsement authorising him to drive such vehicles. Disposing a civil appeal, Justice S R Singaravelu said, "it is not enough if the driver possessed the licence, but should have endorsement. Without endorsement, it would be a breach of condition of the contract of the insurance, in the event of which the liability of the insurer could be avoided".